The Daddy And The Baby Doctor

“Now wait a minute,” he said, suddenly reaching out to stop her. In truth, he wanted to stop her for more reasons than he cared to think about. In fact, he would have liked nothing better in that moment than to chisel away her icy persona. So he had gotten off to a wrong start with the woman. Did she have to be such an iceberg about it? Where was the compassion that all doctors, male or female, were supposed to have? He was used to tangling with international spies and war criminals. Surely he could handle one small-town female doctor. Of course, the protocol in dealing with her as opposed to some war criminal was quite different. Right now, he was on his best behavior. While in the navy, not every situation required that of him.

“The least you can do is hear me out,” he said meaningfully.

Immediately, her eyes dropped to where he held her arm. “Obviously, you don’t understand, Mr. Arquette,” Amanda said. “It’s a matter of ethics. My patients trust me not to repeat our conversations.” She gazed up at him, her blue eyes sparkling with indignation. “Now, if you would be so kind as to let go of my arm.”

The sound of her voice swept through him like a warm, balmy breeze in springtime. Only it wasn’t springtime. It was November, and the winds outside were as chilly as the glare she was giving him. Frankly, he didn’t want to let her arm go. He wanted to pull her against him and kiss those pouty lips of hers. Then again, he was trying to be on his best behavior. Dammit.

“Sure thing, Doc,” he said, releasing her a moment later.

Taking a deep breath, Amanda turned immediately to leave the room.

“But you’re making a mistake,” Sam said in her wake, in a last-ditch effort to stop her without making a scene. He was experiencing an adrenaline rush, and he knew it had to do with her somehow. With the way she had turned her back on him. He wasn’t used to that kind of treatment. He was used to giving it. “It’s you, Doc, who doesn’t understand the seriousness of the situation. This could be a matter of life and death.”

A moment passed while Amanda paused in the doorway. Finally, she spun on her heels to face him, although her expression clearly stated that she was angry at herself for giving in. She gazed at him furiously. “Okay, Mr. Arquette. You’ve got my undivided attention. But this had better be damned good.”

Sam smirked. In spite of everything, he truly admired her spunk.

Not to mention the fact that he was in love with her voice.

He placed his hands on his hips. “Have you ever heard of the Wentworth family of Freemont Springs?” he asked.

Amanda Lucas narrowed her eyes. “Of course. Everyone in Oklahoma knows of them. Their contributions to local charities are legendary.”

“So, you’re aware of their reputation. Then you’re also aware that they’re good, honest people.”

“I know that they’re extremely generous with their money. But I don’t know any of them personally,” Amanda replied.

“Well, I do. They’re close friends of mine—in fact, I’m here on their behalf. They’re looking for someone. A woman by the name of Sabrina Jensen. They have reason to believe you know her. Do you?”

Of course, Amanda knew her. Sabrina Jensen was one of her OB patients. Only Sabrina had missed her last appointment and Amanda’s receptionist had been unable to reach the woman to reschedule. Amanda had thought that rather odd, and had even tried to follow up on it herself, but to no avail. Now, to have this stranger asking questions about her...

“Why are the Wentworths looking for her?” Amanda asked evenly. The last thing she wanted was to give away the fact that she knew Sabrina as a patient. To her way of thinking, she saw nothing in Sam Arquette that made that information any of his business.

“Look, all I need to know is her whereabouts.”

Amanda frowned. “Is she in some kind of trouble?”

“To be honest with you,” Sam said, running his fingers through his hair, “the Wentworths don’t know. That’s why they’re trying to find her.”

“But I don’t understand,” Amanda said. “Why are they having such a problem finding her in the first place?”

Sam frowned to himself. He wasn’t accustomed to being questioned like this. As a soldier, he had been the interrogator. Now, suddenly, he found himself at the other end of the spectrum, and, frankly, it wasn’t any fun. In fact, his patience with the good doctor was wearing awfully thin. “It seems,” he said, “she’s disappeared.”

“I see. What do they think happened to her?” Amanda asked warily.

He shrugged. “That’s just it. They don’t know. But I can tell you this much—the Wentworths are truly concerned about her.”

“Well, I’m sorry, but I can’t help you with this matter.”

“You can’t—or you won’t?” Sam replied, gazing at her intently.

Amanda had turned to leave the room, but she stopped short. She’d had about all she was going to take from this...this imposing man. Just who did he think he was? Wasn’t it enough that he had her guts all tied up in knots to the point where she doubted if they would ever relax again? “Look, Mr. Arquette,” she said, giving him another one of her hard glares. “Even if I knew where the woman was—which I don’t—but even if I did, I wouldn’t tell you.”

“So, in essence,” Sam began cockily, “you would deliberately hide her whereabouts from me even if you knew them.”

Determined to keep her cool, Amanda breathed deeply. “In essence, yes. Now, if you’ll excuse me, Mr. Arquette, I have nothing more to say to you.”

Frustrated that he wasn’t getting anywhere with her, Sam felt his temper flare. More than anything in that moment he wanted to shake some sense into her. For heaven’s sake, couldn’t she see he was only trying to help out a friend?

Sexy voice or not, Amanda Lucas had pushed him just about as far as he wanted to go. Her icy manner was becoming nothing but a pain in the behind. Frankly, it stunk. She was an iceberg, all right, through and through. He had thought he could thaw her without much effort, but he had been wrong. No doubt, one glance from her could have sunk the Titanic. In fact, nothing in that moment—short of kissing her senseless—would have given him greater pleasure than to have found a way to melt her down to size. His size. And then maybe she wouldn’t have been so sassy.

Except for her voice. Heaven help him, but he didn’t want to change a thing about her voice. It was sexy and alluring and the only thing about her that sizzled hot. In many ways, it was more than enough. He was completely and utterly enthralled with it—with the woman he suspected was hiding somewhere in that deep freeze surrounding her. But, dammit, he hated having to admit it.

“Look,” he said. “The Wentworths are good people. I hope that once you think this over, you’ll reconsider giving me the information they need.”

“I’m sorry, Mr. Arquette, but I won’t be changing my mind. Now if you’ll excuse me...”

Despite Amanda’s best intentions to just turn and march away, she found herself practically standing toe-to-toe with the source of her irritation. The audacity of the man. Just who did he think he was, anyway, coming into her office like this and disrupting her day? Making her feel breathless. She wasn’t obligated to help him, even though he seemed to think she was.

Actually, it didn’t surprise her at all that she was already at odds with him. From the moment her eyes had locked with his, she had known that he was going to be trouble. Big-time trouble. The kind of trouble she had purposely avoided for years now. Handsome. Intelligent. Cocky. He had the makings of a good old-fashioned heartbreaker. Thanks, but no thanks. Once in a lifetime was more than plenty for her. She had a purpose in life now...a reason for being. She had her patients and they needed her. And she needed them. They were her joy, her life. Perhaps, she would never totally come to terms with the way her life had turned out. Undoubtedly, she would never forget the hurt she had suffered at the hands of her ex-fiancé. But there were some things she simply had to accept.

Suddenly, Amanda realized what she was doing to herself and returned her attention to the present. “I have to get back to my patients now, Mr. Arquette. Good day.”

Then she made a mental note to look into the matter of Sabrina Jensen once again. If, indeed, Sabrina was hiding out, then she was probably alone and frightened. She might even be in need of food and medical attention. But no matter the difficulties Sabrina was having to endure, Amanda would have gladly traded places with her. It had to be a wonderful feeling to be carrying the baby of the man you loved. Unfortunately, she would never know.

Once again, Amanda turned to leave the room. Just as she did, she came face-to-face with her receptionist. The young woman looked frantic. “What is it, Kathy?” Amanda asked.

“Doc Lucas,” she said excitedly. “You’d better come quick. It’s Lucy Foreman. She says her baby is coming—and I think she’s right.”

“Is she on the phone?”

“No, she’s in the waiting room.”

Oh, good Lord, Amanda thought. Just what she needed right now. An emergency delivery—and at her office, no less.

She hurried down the hall toward the waiting room. “Is her husband with her?”

“No,” Kathy said, following alongside her. “She’s alone.”

“Great,” Amanda muttered.

Stopping short, Amanda spun around and glared at Sam Arquette who had been following behind at a distance. “Don’t leave just yet, Mr. Arquette,” she said. “I may be needing your assistance. More than likely, someone is going to have to help me move my patient to an examining room.”

“You’re joking, right?” he replied, halting in his tracks to gape at her.

“No,” Amanda said. “I’m afraid not.”

Sam frowned. “I presume I have a choice in this matter.”

“Of course,” she answered, squaring her shoulders as if to say, if that was how he felt, she didn’t really need him, after all.

But Sam figured it was costing her a lot to ask him for his help. If there was one thing he had already come to realize about Dr. Amanda Lucas, she wasn’t a woman who liked having to depend on a man for anything. Well, hey, that wasn’t his problem.

“Okay, Doc,” he said. “I’m in.”

In a heartbeat, Amanda turned and rushed down the hallway toward her patient.

As Sam followed at her heels, he couldn’t help but wonder what he was getting himself into.

Chapter Two

Now that Amanda had a moment to think over what she had just done, she had no idea what had made her decide to get him involved. Stupidity, she supposed. Initially, she had thought that, under the circumstances, Sam could have come in handy. But even if that did turn out to be the case, it didn’t excuse the fact that he was arrogant and demanding, and that any woman with a lick of sense could have easily seen that about him, first and foremost, before noticing how handy he might have been. But was she looking at him with a lick of sense?

Uh-uh. Oh, no, not her. From the moment she had laid eyes on him, she had yet to use an ounce of her brain power.

Which told her one thing. She had better get a grip on herself—and quick. She didn’t have time to be toying around with thoughts of Sam Arquette. At this very moment, she had an emergency on her hands.

Still, Amanda found that her heart was pounding like crazy at the idea that Sam Arquette was following close on her heels and that if she so much as paused, even for a second, he would be right on top of her.

Needless to say, she didn’t pause, not even as she swung open the door leading from the back part of her office into the waiting room area. The last thing she wanted was to have Sam Arquette on top of her. In fact, the very thought of it left her feeling breathless.

“Has anyone called an ambulance?” she asked, taking in some badly needed air. She had several reasons for needing it. Of course, the number one reason was Sam Arquette himself. The man was...well...suffocating.

“No, not yet,” Kathy replied.

“Then do it,” Amanda ordered, hurrying forward.

Within a split second of scanning the entire waiting room, Amanda saw Lucy Foreman hunched over in a chair in one corner of the room. Crouched down at Lucy’s feet was Sheré, Amanda’s nurse. She was taking Lucy’s blood pressure.

Amanda hurried over, then bent down in front of her patient. “What’s going on, Lucy?” she asked, trying to evaluate the situation for herself. For the moment, at least, Sam Arquette was nowhere within her immediate thoughts. Still, her pulse was racing from the urgency of the moment—and, regardless of what else she told herself, from the fact that it was him, she knew, who was now standing right behind her, practically breathing down her neck. As a result, chills ran rabid down her spine.

But, regardless of her reaction to Sam Arquette, one thing was becoming perfectly clear to her.

Ready or not, there was a baby on the way, and it looked as though he or she wasn’t planning to wait around very much longer for the rest of the world to figure that out.

“It’s the baby, Dr. Lucas,” Lucy cried out.

“I know, Lucy,” Amanda said in a comforting voice. “But don’t worry. Everything is going to be okay. Where’s Tom?”

Tom was not only Lucy’s husband, but he was also supposed to be her coach during labor.

“At a cattle auction in Freemont Springs,” Lucy replied, tears brimming in her eyes.

Amanda stood and drew in a deep breath. Freemont Springs was almost two hours away from Mason’s Grove. There was no way Tom Foreman could make it back to Mason’s Grove in time to be at his wife’s bedside for the birth of their first child. One thing about babies, they were notorious for ignoring the readiness of others and coming into this old world when they were good and ready.

And, without a doubt, Lucy’s baby was ready.

“I can’t do this without Tom,” Lucy cried out.

“Of course, you can,” Amanda said, giving her patient a warm, reassuring smile. In her experience as an OB doctor, it never failed that when a woman went into labor, the one person she wanted at her side was the man she loved. But sometimes that simply wasn’t possible. She thought of Sabrina Jensen. If Mr. Arquette’s story was true, the young waitress would have to deliver her baby into the world all alone. As a woman, Amanda allowed herself a moment to feel sad for Sabrina; however, as a physician, she knew she had to get a grip and focus on what was happening right now.

“I know you were counting on Tom being here with you,” she said, gazing at Lucy, “but it doesn’t look like that’s going to happen. Just think about it, honey,” she added, her whole manner growing serious, but confident. “You could do this all by yourself if you had to. But, of course, you don’t have to. I’ll be with you every step of the way.”

After a moment’s pause, Amanda’s words seemed to sink in, and Lucy nodded in agreement.

Assured in her ability to get her patient through her labor without the added guidance of a labor coach, Amanda moved quickly to get her office ready for the unexpected delivery. Still, she took a moment to give Lucy a reassuring hug.

Turning with the idea of giving her staff additional instructions on what to do next, Amanda was startled to find herself face-to-face with Sam Arquette.

Well, they weren’t exactly face-to-face. It was more like face-to-chest. Her face. His chest. Her eye level was just below the base of his threat—in fact, right above the V opening of his sport shirt. Never in her life had she been so starkly aware of the dark, springy hair that grew on a man’s chest. Not even in med school. He swallowed, and without much upward movement of her eyes, Amanda watched his Adam’s apple bob up and down. Her breath lodged in her throat. The whole thing gave her the silliest feeling in the pit of her stomach. Then she lifted her eyes a few inches higher, and wham! They locked with his.

He grinned knowingly, as though somehow he knew about the silly feeling in the pit of her stomach and the breathlessness that was presently making her feel almost light-headed. “What do you want me to do?” he asked.

For some reason, that question was enough to suck out any air that was left in her lungs. If she ever decided to allow herself a naughty moment, there would have been plenty of things she would have liked to have seen him do. But, of course, she never allowed herself such things.

“Uh...” she stammered, mentally shaking herself free of the unconscious hold he had on her. “I need to get Lucy Foreman to one of the examining rooms in the back. Can you help me?”

A cocky, lopsided grin slid up one side of Sam’s face. “I can do better than that,” he said, brushing past her and lifting Lucy into his arms. “I can get her there myself.”

In his sudden move to get to her patient, he had rubbed his arm across Amanda’s breasts. Without actually looking at her, he mumbled an apology.

“Uh—no problem,” Amanda answered.

But, of course, there was a problem.

A big problem.

Her nipples were squeezed tight. And the tingling sensation in the pit of her stomach persisted.

Amanda was rattled, no doubt about it. Still, she refused to accept what was happening to her. She had come too far from her past experience with men to allow some arrogant so-and-so to walk into her world and shake it up.

Taking a deep, steadying breath, Amanda straightened her shoulders. “Have you ever done this before, Mr. Arquette?” she asked, adding a slight edge to her voice. It was intentional, of course. She wanted to make sure that the distance she planned to keep from him was well-defined. She only hoped he had gotten her message.

Sam gave her the most incredulous-looking smile. “What—carry a woman?”

Amanda felt a blush rise to her cheeks. She had no idea why she had asked him such a dumb question. Of course, a guy like him had carried a woman before. Plenty of times, no doubt. And straight up to bed, she was more than willing to bet. Nonetheless, determined now to see this moment through, she met his stare evenly. “I was referring to the fact that Lucy’s in labor,” she added for clarification.

The corners of Sam’s mouth twitched up. “Well, now that you mention it, I once came to the rescue of a pregnant woman.” He tightened his hold on Lucy. “But it’s a long story. We probably don’t have time for it right now.”

Lucy groaned.

Amanda felt another wave of heat rise to her face.

“N-no, of course not,” she finally stammered after coming to her senses. Still, she found herself intensely curious about his story—particularly about the pregnant woman. And though she usually minded her own business, she would have liked nothing better in that moment than to have heard its details. “Follow me,” she commanded instead.

“I want Tom with me,” Lucy wailed, wrapping her arms around Sam’s neck.

They reached the nearest examining room. “Place her in here,” Amanda said. Sam entered the room and gently laid Lucy down on the examining table that had been made ready for her just moments ago. Then he stepped back, clearly with the intention of leaving the room.

Reaching out, Lucy grabbed hold of his arm. “Don’t leave me,” she cried. “Please...”

Startled, Sam gaped at her. Finally, he said, “I’m not what you need, Lucy. I’m not a doctor.”

“I don’t care,” she cried out. “Tom’s not here. Please don’t leave me.”

Sam glanced up, his startled gaze meeting Amanda’s. His eyes probed hers and he didn’t blink once during the following few seconds. But finally, unable to deal with the intensity of the moment, Amanda had to look away. Shrugging her shoulders, she said, “If Lucy wants you to stay, that’s fine with me.”

Looking completely bewildered, Sam shook his head from side to side. “Now wait a minute,” he said, his hands perched on his hips. “You’ve got the wrong guy here. That story I mentioned a moment ago had nothing whatsoever to do with delivering any baby. The woman just happened to be pregnant. Period. I don’t know the first thing about women having babies.”

Which was the truth, Sam realized. On both occasions when his girls had been born, he had been out of the country on a mission.

“It’s not all that difficult,” Amanda found herself saying. “All you have to do is tell her when to breathe and when to push.”

Once again, Sam’s eyes met Amanda’s. And, once again, the encounter did strange things to her. Things she would have preferred not to have to recognize. Suddenly, she felt hot all over.

“Is that all there is to it?” he asked.

“That’s it,” she replied breathlessly—and she was completely aggravated with herself for feeling that way.

But, in spite of everything, Amanda had a feeling that Sam Arquette was quite capable of filling in as Lucy’s labor coach. In fact, she had a feeling that he was quite capable of doing anything he put his mind to.

“Well, Mr. Arquette, you’re going to have to hurry and make up your mind on this one,” Amanda stated in no uncertain terms. “As you can see, there isn’t much time. Either you’re in or out. So what’s it going to be?”

It was going to have to be out, Sam told himself. This was one time he was in way over his head.

He sucked in a deep breath and tried to find the right words to explain his decision to the lady-doctor and her patient. Surely once he did, they would understand why he couldn’t be a part of this.

But then Lucy started moaning, again.

And then Sam remembered something.

Something very vital to his nature.

There was no way he could ever live with himself if he turned his back on a woman in need.

He simply wasn’t made that way.

Regardless of the circumstances.

Dammit.

He slipped off his bomber jacket and threw it in a far corner of the room. Then he began rolling up the sleeves of his shirt. “Okay, tell me what I have to do,” he said, resigning himself to the inevitable.

Amanda was impressed, both with the man and his decision to stick by Lucy when it was obvious that wasn’t what he really wanted to do. “Stand at her head,” she instructed him. He quickly moved into that position. “Now,” she added, “when I give the word, lift her shoulders slightly off the table and instruct her to push hard. When she isn’t pushing, you want her breathing like this.” She demonstrated the technique. “Got it?”

“Got it,” he replied.

But it wasn’t long before Sam realized that he didn’t have it quite like he thought. Giving birth was a laborious job.

In fact, it was downright exhausting, and he was only the coach. Lucy had to do all the work. Poor woman. If she wasn’t pushing so hard that her face was turning as red as a beet, she was working hard at breathing correctly. Amanda Lucas was the coolest person there. She was in total control. Thank goodness, someone was, he thought.

But Amanda was anything but cool. As a doctor, she was in control of the situation. But as a woman, practically forced into the company of a man she found extremely attractive, she was on fire. Burning up. Nonetheless, this was her moment of glory—her reason for deciding to specialize in prenatal care and delivery. If she couldn’t have children of her own, she would help other women give birth. Somehow, even if it was vicariously, it helped to ease the ache inside of her. Right now was a moment of joy...a moment of complete wonderment.

Amanda’s heart began to pound. “It won’t be long now, Lucy,” she said. “The baby’s crowning.” Then, without actually glancing up at Sam, she added, “Are you all right?”

“Uh—yeah—sure,” Sam replied. “Is the baby coming?”

“Uh-huh...a couple more minutes should do it,” Amanda said.

“That’s it?” he asked in awe.

Amanda gazed up at him momentarily. “You’re doing fine, Mr. Arquette. Hang in there just a few minutes longer. A good way to stay focused is to think of this baby as your child being born.”

“Is it a boy?” he said, grinning. “I always wanted a boy.”

For some silly reason, Amanda’s heart sank to the floor. “Then this should be easy for you.”